PATRIOTS NOTEBOOK: Pats' project making progress

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick says sixth-round draft choice Zach Moore is adjusting to the leap from Division 2 college ball to the NFL.

Glen Farley The Enterprise @GFarley_ent

FOXBORO – Approximately 1,400 miles separate St. Paul, Minn., from Foxboro, Mass.

The distance between Division 2 college football and the NFL is even greater than that.

That’s exactly the distance former Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bear Zach Moore is attempting to travel this year as a sixth-round draft pick of the Patriots.

“It’s a big jump,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick acknowledged during a conference call late Sunday morning, “and I think he’s made progress on a daily basis really. Every time he goes out on the field you can see some improvement.

“He works hard. He’s very conscientious, very attentive, really tries to do things right. He’s just got a lot of things to work on and he’s playing against a lot different level of players than he has in the past. I think he’s really done a good job of all the things that we’ve asked him to do, but it’s a big jump.”

It’s a jump the defensive lineman continued to make in the fourth quarter of Friday night’s 30-7 win over Carolina at Gillette Stadium when he threw Panthers quarterback Derek Anderson for a 7-yard loss (the sack was negated by a holding call against linebacker James Morris, however).

While there’s no question that the 6-foot-6, 275-pounder remains a project, Belichick left no doubt that he sees Moore making progress.

Vets reportedly cut: Citing a league source, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported late Sunday afternoon that the Patriots had cut three veterans: defensive tackle Tommy Kelly, defensive end Will Smith and linebacker James Anderson.

Kelly and Smith have similar tales in that they are both 33 and both suffered torn anterior cruciate ligaments in 2013: Kelly with the Patriots in Week Five of the regular season; Smith in the preseason with the New Orleans Saints.

Anderson, 30, signed with the Patriots as a free agent on June 4 after leading the Chicago Bears in tackles last year with 102.

Coach on comeback: The coach sounded a bit – shall we say? – withdrawn when discussing defensive tackle Vince Wilfork’s comeback from the season-ending Achilles tear he suffered in Atlanta last September.

While saying “I have no issues with him” and adding “I think he’s worked very hard coming back from the injury he had last year and be ready to go this season,” Belichick warned: “It’s preseason. Let’s not confuse preseason with regular season.”

When asked if Wilfork has looked good to him, Belichick ended the line of questioning by saying, “He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do.”

Two more to practice: Belichick said he doesn’t see the league’s decision to expand practice squads from eight to 10 players having a major effect.

“I don’t know how much of an impact it’s going to have,” said Belichick. “It’s a little bit different. It does give you a couple more players on the field.”